Here is a recap of the stories that appeared last week at Science-Based Medicine, a multi-author skeptical blog that separates the science from the woo-woo in medicine.

Selective pressures on alternative medicine(David Gorski) Alternative medicine has evolved, developing in stages from folk medicine into integrative medicine, and producing new species. Selective pressures favor ineffective treatments over harmful ones; homeopathy is ideal because there’s nothing in it. Evolutionary principles are only part of the explanation. Other factors are responsible for CAM’s recent popularity and its spread into academia.

Product B: Here We Go Again(Harriet Hall) A notorious multilevel marketing (MLM) company has introduced Product B, a diet supplement mixture to “support telomeres.” The science of telomeres and their role in aging is fascinating, but the rationale for Product B is purely speculative and there is no evidence that it slows aging or improves health in any way.

In the Spirit of Choosing Wisely(Mark Crislip) The Choosing Wisely initiative of the American Board of Internal Medicine asked various medical societies to identify 5 or more do’s and don’ts to implement evidence-based medicine in their respective fields. The American College of Medical Toxicology and the American Academy of Clinical Toxicology came up with appropriate “don’ts” for homeopathy, supplements, chelation, heavy metal screening tests, and dental mercury amalgams. Unfortunately, their “do’s” for low back pain and choosing a pain reliever recommend CAM modalities like acupuncture and chiropractic, treatments that don’t meet the criteria of their own organization.

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SWIFTis named after Jonathan Swift, the author of Gulliver's Travels. In the book, Gulliver encounters among other things a floating island inhabited by spaced-out scientists and philosophers who hardly deal with reality. Swift was among the first to launch well-designed critiques against the flummery - political, philosophical, and scientific - of his time, a tradition that we hope to maintain at The James Randi Foundation.